Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Overnight Oatmeal

Most weekend mornings go something like this: Sante and I wake up and lay in bed for a minute.

I say, “I’m hungry.”

He says, “No way. I don’t believe you.”

For whatever reason, I wake up with a ravenous hunger. Like, a feed-me-now-or-you’ll-be-sorry type of need. Even when I’ve eaten a huge meal and decided a nap would be a good idea, I wake up needing more to eat.

And although I love to cook, the mornings are one of those times where I wish I had a personal chef who’d have it all ready for me so I could lazily lounge around with a big cup of coffee and my journal without putting on an apron in the a.m.

That looks about right.

Enter the slow cooker. We bought this bad boy a few weeks ago and I’ve been having a lot of fun. I made pork carnitas tacos and we had a Mexican feast with friends from the Netherlands, Germany and Texas. I’ve been experimenting with more Moroccan recipes. YUM.

And I’ve stumbled upon the great idea that is making breakfast before you go to bed. Hallelujah! I have found my personal chef!

I’m still working on that weekend recipe, but something far more useful is a meal for the weekdays. I’ve found a few oatmeal recipes, which I’ve tried, but they’ve turned out bland and mushy. Not the kind of thing you’re excited about in the morning.

So I decided to start figuring out one that is flavorful and more than just mush in your mouth. After a few weeks of tweaking, here’s what I came up with.

Place the apples on the bottom of the slow cooker/crock pot and put everything else on top of it in the order above. Don’t mix it! The apples on the bottom need to cook longer than what’s on top. Place the lid on, turn on low and go to sleep! When you wake up 7-9 hours later, breakfast will be ready!